A stunning video clip about the beauty of the Maltese Coast

Deep within Malta's blue sea lies a galaxy of marine wildlife coming in all shapes, sizes and colours, or so we're told. For despite the rich heritage, most Maltese know little of the underwater world encircling the island's 300-kilometre coastline.

But two 15-minute-long underwater documentaries released this week are seeking to change that and bring Malta's submarine treasures to light.


Venomous stargazers, eels, bearded fireworms, eerie John Dory, barracuda and colonies of salps (a type of plankton) all feature. Viewers can observe mutualism at work first-hand, as a sea anemone and hermit crab benefit from one another.


The documentaries, which cover marine protected areas Rdum Majjiesa and Dwejra, are not available for sale. Instead, they will be distributed to all schools as of the next scholastic year.
Public screenings of the documentaries are also planned, with the footage eventually being projected continuously within a number of environmental information areas, including one set to be established at Dwejra.
Produced by Shaun Arrigo and Monolith Ltd, the documentaries were commissioned by the University of Malta's International Ocean Institute centre as part of the EU-funded Panacea project.


The Panacea -- or Promotion of Marine Protected Areas Through Environmental Education Centres -- project will run until 2013. It seeks to promote sound management of marine ecosystems through education.


IOI-Malta marine biologist Alan Deidun praised the documentary, saying: "It marks an unprecedented local attempt at projecting Malta's stunning underwater assets to students through unrivalled video quality."

Too cute to be true!

The farmer is proud about his latest addition in the family

90" Eco Seconds - #2 Mdina & Rabat : Vine and wine experience

        Amoureux de nature et de gastronomie, venez vivre une expérience hors du commun dans la campagne maltaise autour de la fabrication du vin. En voici un aperçu en images.

Découvrez Mdina l'ancienne capitale de l'île, qui vous offre un incroyable voyage dans le temps grâce à son architecture traditionnelle, ses étroites ruelles et l'impressionnante cathédrale Saint Paul. Depuis ses remparts, profitez d'un panorama exceptionnel sur Malte.

Notre expérience se poursuit non loin de là au milieu des vignes de Rabat où vous recevrez l'accueil chaleureux d'un agriculteur local qui prendra le soin de vous faire visiter sa ferme entretenue depuis des générations. Vous déambulerez au coeur de l'exploitation et notre guide expert vous expliquera tous les secrets de l'activité viticole. Dans ce cadre idyllique vous aurez le privilège de déguster les nombreux produits locaux et notamment vous succomberez au savoureux vin fruité produit à base du raisin issu d’un terroir baigné de soleil.

                                        

Enfin, à proximité, rejoignez le village de Dingli et ses falaises escarpées qui surplombent la splendide Méditerranée. Promenez-vous sur les landes et découvrez une nature préservée dans laquelle cohabitent une faune et une flore unique.

Emotions garanties pour cette expérience insolite !

Si vous souhaitez recevoir plus de renseignements sur nos excursions, n'hésitez pas à visiter notre site internet Merillecotours.com ou écrivez nous à notre adresse internet à info@merillecotours.com 

Retrouvez-nous sur Facebook et sur Twitter.

An Apple a Day

Hey Merill fans,

A proud young farmer happy about his ripening apples

After Thursday's local TV episode of "Ilsien in-Nisa" featuring Merill Eco Tours, we are very happy with all the positive comments received by email and on our Facebook fan page. This gave us fuel to keep working hard to bring about the best agri and eco experiences for locals and tourists all year round.

The grey and windy weekend in Malta did not discourage people from going out to enjoy the countryside.

Yesterday I had the opportunity to visit some fields in Mosta where John Gauci, is cultivating some delicious fruits and vegetables. Onions, courgettes, olives and pomegranates are grown with great care, making sure good farming practices are followed.

John, is a 19 year-old young farmer who is still pursuing his studies. The fields he's taking care of are located in an area where rural structures with impressive architecture are found. Unfortunately most of these are crumbling down and are in need restoration urgently. Urban sprawl and the continuous struggle with the Planning Authority are the major set backs of farmers in the area. 

Nonetheless, John is not discouraged and with a lot of hard work and continuous encouragement from his family, he keeps on doing his best to improve the land. During the visit he showed me around and at one point in time he directed our attention towards a small tree sheltered by reeds. It was the indigenous apple tree variety of Malta known as Ta' Belludja. It reminded me of a University assignment I prepared some years back which dealt about this particular tree. I remember my disappointment when at the time I discovered how much little literature was available on the subject. The picture above shows John and the apples, ripening nicely in time for the summer months ahead.

I was really fascinated about the history behind this variety. Will keep you all posted about the ripening apples. Rest assured that I will be one of the first to taste them :)

Jeanette